White, who became the 31st chair of the SEC in April 2013, will be one of the organisation’s longest serving chairs, and has been behind the agency’s move to adopt a new approach to enforcement in the wake of the financial crisis.

During her tenure, the SEC brought more than 2,850 enforcement actions, more than any other three-year period in its history, and obtained judgments and orders totalling more than $13.4bn in monetary sanctions.  The SEC charged over 3,300 companies and over 2,700 individuals, including CEOs, CFOs, and other senior corporate officers.

The record number of enforcement actions over the last three fiscal years against companies and senior executives involved many ‘first of their kind’ cases, including the $9.3m (£7.5m) penalty for EY over claims two of the auditor’s partners had too close personal relationships with senior staff in an audit client.

The SEC has awarded more than $100m to whistleblowers since the inception of its programme to recognise those who provide key original information that led to successful enforcement actions, virtually all during White’s tenure as chair, which also saw a 20% rise in staff numbers.

White implemented the agency’s first-ever policy to require admissions of wrongdoing in certain cases where heightened accountability and acceptance of responsibility is appropriate.  Thus far, the SEC has required admissions from more than 70 defendants, including 44 entities and 29 individuals.

White said: ‘I am very proud of our three consecutive years of record enforcement actions, dozens of fundamental reforms through our rulemakings that have strengthened investor protections and market stability, and that the job satisfaction of our phenomenal staff has climbed in each of the last three years.

‘It has been and will always be critical for this agency and the public that the SEC remain truly independent.  That independence is crucial to our ability to protect investors, safeguard our markets and facilitate the capital formation that fosters innovation and the growth that is essential to our national economy.’

Following White’s departure it is likely that Michael Piwowar, as the sole Republican commissioner, will probably be designated by incoming president Donald Trump to serve as acting chairman until a permanent chairman is selected.

White, who is a lawyer by training, serves as a member of the Financial Stability Oversight Council and on several other domestic and international organisations, including the International Organization of Securities Commissions, the Financial Stability Board, the International Financial Reporting Standards Foundation Monitoring Board, the Financial and Banking Information Infrastructure Committee, and the Federal Housing Finance Oversight Board.